Rod and Gun.

Evening Post, Volume LXXV, Issue 45, 22 February 1908, Page 14

Rod and Gun.

(By "Gamebag.") [Contributions to tins column, addressed "Gamebag," will be welcomed. They Bhould be concise, and niu»t be signed with the writer's full name and address, not for publication, but as a guarantee of authenticity.! The fishing season began with a flourish. Good bags wero obtained, and large numbors of people were induced to try thoir luck— or most of them did— and and spent many days of enjoyablo sport in tho open country. Then thero was an abundanco of rain, and tho sport for a week or two was not obtainable. Soon tho weathor cleared. Tho streams wero perhaps at .thoir best, and good sport was of ordinary occurrence. But in a week or two's timo sovoral of the streams began to get shallow. Anglers wero not much concerned, and attention was given to thoso streams which maintained their freshness. Lo\yor and lower became the water, and moro frequent camo the complaints until about Christmas time grave fears wero entertained tor tho success of the remainder of tho season. Since then things have gradually bocome w'orso from that timo, until now it is hardly sale to montion fishing to many of tho local a,nglers. They did not give up their fascinating sport without a struggle. At first they were content with smalt catches; but as time wore on, and conditions became worse, oven the most ardont wero willing to seek other forms of amusement. - THE HUTT RIVER. Speaking generally, tho Hutt River is the only river worthy of attention ac present. Even it -is low, and in somo places overgrown to a considerable extent with weeds. A Jocal angler on the river thu other day succeeded in bagging a woll-conditioncd five-pounder, but such catches aro now raro. No luck to speak of has been experienced on the river during the day time. It is only at night and carlj morning, that anything like sport, has beon ' obtained. Tho most successful fly during rho past few weeks has been the "big lake." Thoro is no reason why an experienced angler should not meet <vith fairly ' good sport on' the river at night- time, provided that luck does not entirely desert him. Of course, even at ir,s best, tho Hutt is a changeablo river. . THE WAINUI-O-MATA. "Whore is tho Wainui-o-mata River?" is a quostion that has been asked moro than once by. porsons. visiting tho Wainui Valley. At present the river — as tho daily recounts of tho falling water-supply of tho city havo indicated — is becoming a trickling shcarn. .'J'ho weeds, as they-al-ways do ' in protracted strctchei of dry woathor, have grown to a disastrous lengthy It is not so long since the rivor hold premier place among tho rivers with> in easy distance of Wellington. Looking in ono light tho drought will no doubt have a beneficial result in tho Wainui-o-mata. For some time past it has beon common knowledge among local anglers that the stream was ' overstocked. The fish did not havo a chanco to become of reasonable size, but now the number hast boon greatly reduced. In another way tho drought has been of some benefit. Largo numbers of eels havo boon caught in the local rivers. Tho lowness of <ho water has exposed them, aud people haye not been slow to seize

fho opportunity of catching them. Tho cols in tho Wainui-o-mata have been having a bad time lately. On two recent ronsocutivo Saturdays a party succeeded in killing a hundred eels on each day. Homo of them had been dining on trout. Tho various rivers around Wellington havo' already boon rid of large numbers of eels. MISCELLANEOUS. A Maori who has ben well acquainted with tho district for over fifty years stated the other day that he had not scon the rivers so dry as they aro at present. The streams right up the Wairarapa have been suffering considerably through tho drought and bush fires. From pre ecnt appoarances many of them will have to be restocked. No doubt there is a coaeidcrable amount of poaching going on. Quail are doing well throughout the district, and in two or thieo quarters thoy are very plentiful. With regard to pheasants tho taie is somewhat different. In the Wainui-o-mata they havo been successful. The birds were some time ago placed on a cortain landowner's property, provided that he closed his land to sportsmen. This ho did, and the birds havo increased. The pheasants which were turned out in Ohariu Valley havo dono very badly, and now scarcely any are to bo seen. The deer aro plentiful, but there are a numbr pf poor heads, and perhaps too many hinds. Indescriminato shooting has been to some oxtent ' responsible for this. Owners of land, on whose property deer cause damago are entitled to kill thorn off. On ono station alone over ICOO doer havo been slaughtered in this way. It would be interesting to know what check is kep'; upon the man who is paid to kill off tho deer.